Markets mixed after Wall Street rally - 8.25

The Dollar weakening has halted presently. The live dollar index data show the ICE US Dollar index, a measure of the dollar’s strength against a basket of six rival currencies, fell 0.9% on Friday.

Both GBP/USD and EUR/USD reversed their sliding on Friday. Both euro and Pound are lower against the dollar currently. AUD/USD reversed its sliding while USD/JPY reversed its climbing on Friday with the yen lower against the Greenback currently and the Australian dollar higher still.

US stock indexes futures are down currently after Wall Street closed sharply higher on Friday. The three main stock benchmarks recorded daily gains in a range from 1.5% to 1.9% as Fed chair Powell opened the door to a possible interest rate cut at the US central bank’s meeting next month saying “the shifting balance of risks may warrant adjusting our policy stance” after noting that challenges to employment are growing and could materialize quickly in the form of layoffs.

European stock index futures are retreating today after closing higher on Friday led by mining, autos and travel shares. Asian stock indexes futures are mixed currently with Australia’s ASX 200 index leading losses while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index trades near a four-year high buoyed mainly by gains in local tech and chipmaking stocks.

Brent is edging higher currently. Prices ended marginally higher on Friday after Ukraine said the previous day it hit a Russian oil refinery and the Unecha oil pumping station, a critical part of Russia’s Europe-bound Druzhba oil pipeline. US West Texas Intermediate WTI futures ended 0.2% higher and are higher currently. Brent added 0.1% to $67.73 a barrel on Friday.